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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wax · pitch · land · plane · stem · content · race · club

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. race — the arms race
  3. stem — to come from
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. land — ground
  6. race — humankind
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — a group
  9. content — the amount
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. content — happy
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. pitch — completely
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. race — a contest
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. plane — a tool
  19. land — to come down
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. wax — to grow
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. land — a country

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com